The Path To Our Future
by teakshinigami
Summary: The bizarre events that have brought them together are finally over. New friends and new adventures emerge as they decide the road to take to their uncertain future.
1. Chapter 1

**Disclaimer** : I do not own Dengeki Daisy or any of the characters in them…though I wished I did…

 **Chapter 1: Deciding My Future**

It's been a year since the events that led to the rescue of Akira. The addition of Akira to their group had proved to be challenging and well received. Akira had slowly adapted to them to the point of opening up bit by bit to them. He never could've dreamed that this group of folks cared that much for him regardless of all the evil things he had done to them. He had a family; a real family that cared and looked for each other.

The group had fell into a daily routine that included work, studies, training and gets togethers. This helped them get acquainted to Akira and that he could also feel relaxed around them. They all kept their previous job and occasionally took on job requests from the agency. This isn't the case for Kurosaki though. Once Teru graduated, he quitted being the school's janitor, too bad for many of the female students, and took on a full job position at the agency.

 **Speaking of Teru….**

Graduation day came and went for Teru and it was now time to pick the university to which she would continue her studies. Most of her friends have already decided and applied to their prospective universities. They still got together when they could. She loved her best friends.

Based on the events that had happened in her life and the fact that she and Kurosaki were dating each other, she didn't want to be too far away from him or her friends. She wanted to study something that she could be good at and that could also help the team should another difficult case came up. She was currently sitting on the sofa of Kurosaki's apartment reading a few informational brochures of several universities that were close by.

'Ugh, this is tuff' she sighed as she placed down the brochure she finished reading and picked up another one when she heard the front door of the apartment open.

"I'm home"

"Welcome back Kurosaki" called Teru from the living room.

Kurosaki smiled and walked towards Teru bending slightly, he gave her a soft kiss. He chuckled when he pulled back to see a much blushing Teru looking back at him.

"It's amazing. No matter how many times we kiss, you still get embarrassed" he dropped his back on the floor and as he sat down next to her eying the collection of brochures on the coffee table.

"Go bald Kurosaki" she stuck her tongue out and continued reading.

"Having trouble choosing I see" he said as he picked up one of the brochures and casually looked it over, "Do you even know what you want to major at"

She sighed as she stopped reading the brochure, "No… I thought that looking at these it would help me… so far, nothing"

Kurosaki placed down the brochure in his hand and turned to Teru, "You don't have to stress yourself over this, Teru. Just think about what you picture yourself from here to five years in the future. You can choose any college that you like and if it's not to your liking, you can always choose another. It's only the first year of college. Not much happening during that time"

"I know that, but still… I want to study something that can be of use to the team… something that I can be good at"

Kurosaki frowned at this and cupped Teru's face with his hands, "Teru, don't worry about us. Whatever comes, we can handle it… besides you have managed to be a great asset to the team being just the way you are. What makes you think that you're not useful? Have you forgotten what we've been through?"

"No… I haven't forgotten… it's just that… I don't know… I feel like there's something more I can do" she sighed again.

Kurosaki's faces softened as he moved forward to give her a much needed hug, "It's ok. Listen, why don't we go to Master's dinner and cool your head for a while."

She pulled back a bit and nodded, "Ok"

 **Master's Diner….**

"Akira, take these plates to table #4"

"Ok Master"

"Wow, its lively this evening isn't it?" Rena commented as she entered the diner and sat down at the bar next to Matsuda.

"Yeah, it gets like this every time summer break comes. We get quite busy here" Master replied as he finished pouring drinks for them.

"Yo!"

"Kurosaki! Teru! Welcome!"

"Hey guys! Nice to see everyone!" Teru chirped happily as she sat next to Rena.

"Hey Akira, how's work?" Kurosaki asked noticing said boy going up and down the row of tables.

"Crazy! It's been packed since noon and there's still folks coming in!" huffed Akira as he took three more plates from Master and rushed to another table.

"Poor guy" Rena said as she took a sip of her drink.

"Yep, good thing he's been training with Master this past year, otherwise he would've collapsed from exhaustion" Kurosaki added as he lit up a cigarette.

"So what brings you guys here?" Masuda asked.

"Teru's brain was about to collapse" Kurosaki grinned after Teru punched him in the arm.

"HEY!"

"What's wrong Teru?" Rena asked concerned.

"I can't decide what to major at when I start college soon" Teru sighed as she took a sip of her cola.

"Well was there anything in particular that you were obsessed about when you were little?" Masuda asked.

"No… I mean nothing really" Teru replied deep in thought.

"Ok, maybe we can help you out" Master said as he cleaned his hands on a towel.

"How?"

"Well, let's start with what skills are you good at, for example, how good are you with computers?" Master added.

"Not like you guys, just the basic" Teru said knowing full well that she was no match for them.

"Ok, so obviously nothing technology or program related then. What about first aids, nursing?"

"I don't think so"

"What about teaching?" this time it was Masuda who asked.

"No"

"What about psycology?"

"What?" Everyone turned to Akira who only held his hands up in the air, a sign of surrender.

"Well you're good at reading other people's emotions and you are pretty damned stubborn when it comes to helping others… I should know" Akira said as he sat down for a much needed break.

"What do you think Teru?" Kurosaki asked.

"Never thought of that before" Teru was intrigued at this suggestion.

"Akira's right. Remember when I said that you were a great asset to the team being just the way you are? This was it. You're personality and caring about others helped us through the missions. Who knows, maybe this is your strongest point. Why not try it out?" Kurosaki said as he squeezed her hand in support.

"Really?" Teru was taken by surprise.

"Yeah… If it weren't for you, I would've died back there at the island. It was your persistent to not letting me go that got me here today" Akira said as he sipped his cola.

"Do you remember the time that Antler called and tried to brainwash the team? It was you that got us back to our senses" Rena said.

"Wow… never thought of that… Guess I will try it out… thanks you guys" Teru was happy that she was indeed useful to them.

"Heh, what are friends for?" Master said as they all raised their glasses to toast to her new beginnings.

 **Late Evening**

"Man, can those two drink or what?" Kurosaki groaned as he placed a hand on his forehead.

They had just returned from the diner and were currently back at the apartment. Teru was chuckling at his childless attitude, "you shouldn't have teased Rena about her sobriety back then" she said as she came into the living room with two glasses of water.

Kurosaki gladly took it and downed the contents in record speed, "damn that woman, she kicked my ass in that department" he chuckled as he set the glass down on the coffee table. Turning slightly, he stared at Teru who was happily looking over the brochures once more. "So Teru, what are you going to do?"

"Hm… oh… I think I'll go to this one. It's close to home and it offers a bachelors and master in psychology. It's pretty convenient and it's not that pricey".

"Good. I wouldn't want to be apart from you" he said in a low voice and got closer to her.

She could hear her heart pounding as his lips made its way to hers and were now enclosed in a deep passionate kiss. After a few minutes, they broke the kiss panting in need of air.

"Kurosaki… I…" she was silenced by his fingers on her lips.

"Hey, I told you... I'll wait for you… I'm not going to rush you… take your time… I will always be here with you"

Blushing further she nodded and was about to say something else when he claimed her lips again. She was definitely in heaven.

Later they said their goodbyes and Teru went back to the apartment that she shared with Rena, a lazy happy smile on her face.

'Things are finally starting to look up' she thought as she went to her room and went to sleep. But one thought struck her that took away her sleepiness, 'When will I be ready? Will I ever be ready? Will he wait forever?' Somehow she knew that this new ordeal was another battle that she would have to face.


	2. Chapter 2

**Disclaimer** : I do not own Dengeki Daisy or any of the characters in them…though I wished I did…

 **Chapter 2: Trouble Rises**

After several weeks, Teru had finally decided on the university in which she wants to pursue her career. She had left early the next morning to finalize the documentation needed to enroll. She had dragged Akira with her since it was his day off and he didn't have any plans. He didn't mind it though, but so early in the morning? Well… he was not ecstatic.

"Oh man, come on Teru; why we are here at 7:00am? It's not like people are camping here to get into college you know" groaned Akira as they arrived at the closed doors of the Admission Department.

"I know, I know" Teru chuckled at his childish complaint, "but I want to make sure that everything goes smooth today and also we can check out the campus while were here" she said as she reviewed the opening hours sign and then looked around, "where do you want to go first?"

"Ugh… wherever, I'm already regretting this"

"Oh come on, I'm sure you're going to like it and who knows, maybe you'll find something interesting" Teru replied as she dragged him along.

"Ain't gonna happen" he grumbled as he looked around while they walked.

They passed several buildings that looked just like any other; ordinary. They continued walking until they came upon a strange looking building on the far end of the campus. Both Teru and Akira looked at each other and then at the building. The building had a glass roof with a large stethoscope sticking out.

"Maybe this is the Science Division?" Teru asked curious as she neared the entrance of the building.

"Really? What gave you THAT idea?" Akira said sarcastically then huffed when Teru punched him on the arm, "HEY!"

"Come on" Teru groaned as she and Akira entered the building.

"WOW" they both gasped at what they saw inside.

Even though inside were the typical computers, electronics, samples, specimens and such that any science laboratory could have, it was an understatement to say that everything was highly advanced and sophisticated. Akira couldn't believe that they had several 3D printing machines with the latest computers. Even the super computers had caught his attention. Lost in his own world and taking in his surroundings, he didn't notice that Teru had walked in further into the room leaving him in the entrance.

"Yo, wait for me" he shouted and ran after her.

She went to some double doors that were in the far end of the room. Pressing a button on the wall, the doors hissed and both had to cover their eyes; there was so much lighting inside the room that before they could adjust their vision to take a better look, someone had pressed the button to close them.

"Huh?"

"I'm sorry, but this room is for authorized personnel only"

Both Teru and Akira turned to see a tall man in a white laboratory coat. He had black, unruly hair, green eyes and glasses.

"We're sorry", Teru replied, "We were just looking around and found this room"

The tall man nodded, "My name is Professor Murai. Can I help you?"

"Nice to meet you! I'm Teru and this is Akira. What is this place?"

"This is the Advanced Science and Technology Division. We specialize in the neuro-integration between the human mind and technology"

"Wow" Akira whispered as he continued to look around, more interested than before.

Teru chuckled at his reaction and turned to the professor, "What are the requirements to get admitted?"

"Well, you will have to pass the admission exam and then do a thesis in which you can demonstrate your knowledge and interest in our science fields. Once reviewed, you will be notified of your admission"

"Ok, well, thank you and we apologize for the intrusion. Come on Akira, let's go" Teru said as she grabbed Akira's hand who was still lost in space and dragged him towards the exit.

Professor Murai saw both Akira and Teru exited the building. Another figure appeared behind him and grinned.

"So that's the famous Akira?" he said as the professor closed and locked the building doors.

"Yes. And she is Souichirou's sister. What a coincidence." He chuckled as they both walked towards the restricted room.

"Oh man, the agency is not gonna believe this"

"We're not going to tell them yet. I need to find more information about these two, so do not say a word about this, do you understand Akame?"

"Yes professor"

"So what do you think Akira? Interested?" Teru asked as they exited the Science Building and headed towards the Admission Department.

"I don't know. Everything looked so cool, but to take a test?" Akira was deep in thought, something was troubling him.

"Just think about it. You're smart, so that shouldn't be a problem. Besides, you need to get out and explore the world. You don't intend on staying with Master forever, do you?"

"I'll think about it"

"Ok", Teru smiled, "Let's get my paperwork done" she said as they both headed back to the Admission Department.

"So Teru, did you finish your admission process?" Riko asked as she took a sip of her wine.

"Yep, all done and ready to start in two weeks" Teru replied as she dived into her dinner; starving.

"Good. I'm sure you're going to enjoy it" Riko chuckled at her.

"Oh, Akira and I saw this really cool building at the campus today" Teru said as she took a sip of her cola.

"Really? What is it about?" Master asked.

"Tell them Akira" Teru muffled; she had a bitten her burger.

"Teru, chew your food" Akira scolded her before turning to the others, "well it had advanced equipment like I've never seen before. Even more advance than the ones back the agency" Akira said as he waited for the others reactions.

"What?" this had caused the attention of the group.

"Yeah, even their super computers are more advanced than ours" Akira frowned.

"Well, they must have a lot of support and money in order to be at that level" Riko added as she too, was deep in thought about all this.

"Yeah, Professor Murai said only the best of the best are admitted into their research"

"Wait… Who?" asked Master, concern showing on his face.

"Proffesor Murai" Teru replied not liking the look on Master's face, "Is there something wrong"

"I hope not" Master replied as he thought about how to relay the information he had to the others, "He used to work in our agency before any of you guys were hired. He was suspended when they found out that he had been selling information to our enemies"

"Do we need to do a little digging on him?" Kurosaki said as he entered the Diner, "Yo" he greeted the group and sat down next to Teru.

"Let's just watch for now. That was a long time ago and no one had ever heard from him ever since"

"Ok, so who are we talking about just now?" Kurosaki asked as he stole one of Teru's fries.

"Professor Murai" Teru replied.

"Don't know him" he said as he light up his cigarette.

"Good. Let's just keep our eyes open" Master said as he finished placing out everyone's dinner.

"Itadakimasu"

Everyone ate in silence, each one deep in their thoughts.

'Something doesn't feel right' Teru thought as she continued eating her dinner, 'what could it be?'

What troubles are rising for the group? Will they be able to surpass it? Will they brake apart?


	3. Chapter 3

**Disclaimer** : I do not own Dengeki Daisy or any of the characters in them…though I wished I did…

 **Chapter 3: Prelude to Unwanted Trouble**

College has finally started. Teru had her usual general courses and as for Akira, well, being as he aced his college entry exam, he was awarded advanced classes which of course, meant more studying; something he wasn't fond of. She was extremely happy for she found out that several of her high school friends were attending the same college and even better, they were together in most of the general classes. Rena, Kiyoshi, Haruka, Kako, Ken and Yoshi.

"Morning"

"Good Morning Teru" Haruka replied from her seat. She was reading a manga while classes start.

"Hey Teru" chirped the others. They were in mindless conversation when she came into the classroom.

She smiled and walked over to them, "Where's Rena and Kiyoshi?" she asked as she placed her bag down and started to take out the book needed for the class.

"They were called into the professor's office. Something about an upcoming project that he wants them to work with him on"

"Oh… Ok"

"How's Akira doing?" Haruka asked. Lately, she had been a bit more interested in him ever since he joined the group and had abandoned his evil ways.

"He's at home. He made sure his classes started later in the day. He hates waking up early in the morning" Teru chuckled as she sat down as classes were about to start.

 **Meanwhile…**

"Yo Kurosaki, did you finish uploading the software that the director asked for?" Takeda asked as was signing a few documents that he had just finished.

"Yeah, yeah… already done. Where is the file for the master data upload?" groaned Kurosaki as he down a cup of coffee with one hand as he typed on his computer with the other.

"I'll get it" replied Riko.

"Hey guys, check this out" Master dropped a file next to Kurosaki's desk. Kurosaki looked at it curiously and picked it up, "what's this?"

"I did a little digging on our new friend, Professor Murai" Master replied as he sat on a chair across the team, "and found some interesting things that you should know"

The team members stared at Master and then at the file that Kurosaki had just started to open.

"What the…" Kurosaki's eyes widen as he read the file, "is this for real?"

"Master, where did you get this?" Riko asked as she too was staring at the contents of the file.

"Afraid so. As for the source, well I can't tell you guys not that I don't trust you, but… you know… trust me this information has been verified TWICE… Even I couldn't believe it"

Kurosaki closed the file… hard… and stood ready to leave.

"Kurosaki?" Riko asked concerned.

"I need to take a closer look at this bastard and make sure those two are ok" he replied as finished putting on his jacket. Before he left he glanced back at the team, "you guys… you know what we need to do, right?"

With that the team got serious and nodded. Nodding back, Kurosaki left the building.

"Great, just when we have finally achieved some sort of peace" Matsuda groaned as he sat and leaned back in his chair.

"We knew that they we're going to notice sooner or later… just didn't expect it would be this soon" Riko was thinking deeply while chewing on her thumb.

"We need to be ready… they will depend on us when the time comes" Master replied as he got up and glanced at the team.

"Right" they replied in unison.

'DAMN IT!' Kurosaki cursed as he drove at high speed towards the university, 'They just don't know when to quit' he shifted the car as he sped on. After a few minutes he arrived at the parking lot of the university campus. Taking a quick look around and making sure that there were little to no students around, he slowly got out of the car and started walking towards the building that Teru and Akira had previously mentioned. "Well let's take a look, shall we?" he said to himself. He tested the doors and of course they were locked so he worked his magic on the set of locks on the front doors of the building and got them opened.

He did a quick survey of the surroundings and making sure he was alone and verifying the location of cameras, if any, he quietly closed the doors and started taking in the contents of the room. 'I can see why Akira was surprised' he thought to himself as he looked over the different gadgets and devices that were on different work benches, 'this is state of the art shit'. He frowned as he continued until he reached a set of double doors. 'This is where Teru said that the Professor met them'. He tested the doors and of course, they were locked. 'hm, electronic access huh' he frowned even further. Taking out a small scanner from the pocket of his jacket, he scanned the locks features and other details he would need later. Quickly turning towards the doors to the main building, Kurosaki heard foot steps approaching urging him to find a quick place to hide, 'SHIT!' he cursed as he managed to find a good hiding place just in time as the Professor and some other students started to file inside the room.

"As you can see, our department features many of the latest technology which will be at your disposal as each one of you progress through our courses and assigned projects. Any questions?"

"Yes, Professor? How are we able to determine if our thesis or theories can be tested? Do we get to test them ourselves?"

"Actually, to this moment, the advance science team is currently developing a new software that can link the human mind to an artificial one making it an almost human like super human machine"

Several gasps could be heard throughout the room.

"But Professor, the development of that type of technology is still in the design phase… I mean, it was only announced a couple of days ago"

The Professor smiled as he adjusted his glasses, "why yes you are correct. We made that announcement and hence the reason why you were all selected to test it out. Now let us return to the classroom so we can discuss your assignments".

After a few minutes, the group left the building and the locking of doors could be heard. 'This is dangerous. I need to let the others now ASAP'. Kurosaki pulled out his phone and after pushing a few keys he sent the message and closed the phone. 'Now to get the hell out of here and find those two'.

"Ugh who ever said that college was awesome clearly didn't go to this one"

"Oh, come on Haruka it wasn't that bad"

"Easy for you to say Mr. genius, you just had to answer every single question the professor threw at us"

"Well it does pay off to take those summer classes" Kiyoshi grinned as he adjusted his glasses.

"Enough. Let's take our lunch break in peace" Rena complained as she pulled out her lunch box and gave Kiyoshi a sandwich, "here you go"

"Thank you"

"AWWWWW"

"What?"

"You guys are sooooo lovey-dovey!"

"Shut up"

Everybody rolled around laughing while the coupled blushed even further, "Well what about you Teru?"

"eh?"

"Yeah! How are things moving with Kurosaki?"

"Em.. well. Hehe" Teru scratched the back of her head trying to figure out how to get out of this mess, "Well I…"

"TERU!"

Everybody turned their heads to Kurosaki as he ran to where they were, "Kurosaki?" Teru asked as she quickly stood from her spot on the picnic bench, "what's wrong?"

"I need to tell you something" he glanced around, "where's Akira?"

"He should be here soon, his classes start in 20 min. What's going on?" she asked worried now.

Grabbing her hand, he dragged her with him while he texted Akira to meet them back at the dinner.

"Eh? Kurosaki wait! What's going on?" she quickly waved goodbye at her friends and turned to Kurosaki who had a serious expression on his face.

"We got trouble" he replied as he closed his phone and gripped Teru's hand.


End file.
